Wanted: Mexican Food w/ Outdoor seating

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On Sat, 01 Jun 2002 08:09:12 -0500, Green B. wrote:

> As many restaurants as I've visited, I was stumped yesterday to think of
> a Mexican restaurant that had outdoor dining.
>
> I called Las Cazuelas (Lawrence & Elston) but they said theirs was
> closed because it was raining (full sunshine and dry sky at Chicago &
> Franklin)
>
> I thought of calling CHILPANCINGO but I was underdressed.
>
> My usual spots on da SOUT SIDE don't offer outdoor.
>
> I'd like REAL Mexican food, so CHEE - POT - ELS is out.

I prefer my Mexican food on the inauthentic side. The authentic stuff seems a bit bland and lardy for my taste.

> Any thoughts?
Use this:
http://www.chireader.com/cgi-bin/rrr/search.cgi

A search for "Mexican/Southwestern" in "All Locations" with "Outdoor Seating" check-box checked yields 41 results.

I'd post them here but the results are spread out over four pages (so they can sell more ads, er, uh, I mean for your convenience).

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Green B. wrote:
>As many restaurants as I've visited, I was stumped yesterday to think
>of a Mexican restaurant that had outdoor dining.
>
>I called Las Cazuelas (Lawrence & Elston) but they said theirs was
>closed because it was raining (full sunshine and dry sky at Chicago &
>Franklin)
>
>I thought of calling CHILPANCINGO but I was underdressed.
>
>My usual spots on da SOUT SIDE don't offer outdoor.
>
>I'd like REAL Mexican food, so CHEE - POT - ELS is out.
>
>Any thoughts?

Taco Grande in Batava has outdoor seating. I haven't been there in a while since I moved. I mentioned them a year or so ago here and I think some people visited and could give impressions. When I was a regular I could highly recommend most things on their special menu (whatever was written on the board next to the door) and don't fall into the temptation of ordering the "augh! I don't know what to get so I'll get the Taco Grande platter" becuase that's a boring thick dish.

I used to also get -

green enchilades, chicken - pretty good green.

dark red smokey-ish sauce (my mind is blank on the word right now. uh... uh...)  enchilades - it was pretty great, then at some point the recipe for the red changed and I am not sure I want to get them. better than chain restaurants, but my dissapointment shows.

mole enchilades, chicken

I think a regular on the specials menu is cactus enchilades (this is vegetarian). This is very good.

The menu of this place is large. I liked to order dish 101? 102? some of the steak-like dishes. Strips of steak sliced up into pieces and then served with different types of things. I'd get them with corn tortillas and scoop.

They open at 11:30 I think, and if I hadn't had breakfast and was feeling in the mood for a breakfast type of meal I would get a sandwhich with eggs a generous slice of avacoda, beans, a piece of white cheese, and slices of deliciously cooked chilis. I am not sure what type of chilis they are. Wonderfully flavorful!

This place is right near a bike path along Fox Valley River.

So if you walk outside the restaurant, facing the street, turn left, go to the main road, you will see a bridge. I cannot remember exactly but if you cross the street, maybe on your side of the bridge, there is a soda place. You can get all kinds of sodas, shakes, ice creams, etcs there. I like peppermint shakes. I did not do this usually after a meal at Taco Grande though.

Oh, they've gotton (or had last I'd been there) insanely crowded. go during off hours or get reservations.

sh

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Cliff wrote:
> > As many restaurants as I've visited, I was stumped yesterday to think
> > of a Mexican restaurant that had outdoor dining.
>
>
> There is a place on Halsted and, I think, Wrightwood that has a
> big-ass patio with a fair amount of trees for shading.  I don't know
> the name and I have not eaten there, but they used to have sign out
> that Geno the semi-celebrity chef from Ixcazapulco / Chilpancingo,
> etc. conuslted there.  If you go, please let us know how it is.

las fuentes..i walked out after waiting 45 min. for meals (while others seated after us were served). the waiter tried to explain as we left that 'shrimp takes a long time to cook'. never been back, never will.

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Someone wrote:
>As many restaurants as I've visited, I was stumped yesterday to think
>of a Mexican restaurant that had outdoor dining.

Not Mexican, but Costa Rican, Irazu at 19xx N. Clybourn has an outdoor area, not fancy, more "taqueria" speed if you know what I mean.  The food is great - try the fried plantains (if they're still open - haven't been there since last summer).